The case usually starts with cost. DXP licences are significant, and so is the specialist development they need. When renewal comes round, a team realises it uses the CMS every day, the personalisation rarely and the analytics never, because those jobs moved to other tools years ago.
Start with what you actually use
Before comparing platforms, list the DXP features you rely on today, not the ones in the original business case. Check whether personalisation rules are still live and still maintained. Check which forms, testing and email features are in use, and whether another tool already does the same job better.
- Content types, templates and components, and how many are still used
- Personalisation rules and segments that are live and still earn their keep
- Forms, and where their submissions go
- Integrations with CRM, marketing automation, search, identity and analytics
- Multi-site and multi-language setups, and who manages each
What WordPress replaces, and what it does not
WordPress handles content management, editing, workflow and multi-site publishing well. Personalisation, A/B testing and marketing automation are better handled by dedicated tools connected to the site, rather than by plugins. In practice that is often an improvement: each tool is best at its job, and you can change one without replacing the rest.
You are not moving a DXP to WordPress. You are moving your content to WordPress, and your other jobs to the right tools.
The migration itself
- A content model designed for WordPress, rather than a copy of the old one
- A component library rebuilt as custom blocks, so editors keep the flexibility they had
- Content moved by script, with rich text, media and references carried across
- Every URL mapped and redirected, so search rankings survive the move
- Integrations rebuilt and tested against real data before launch
The licence saving usually funds a large part of the rebuild within the first couple of years. The bigger gain is often speed: more developers know WordPress, and editors can do more without waiting for specialist help.
We compare staying, upgrading and moving in a Blueprint, with the costs set out side by side. When WordPress is the right destination, we plan and run the migration.
